Books

04/19/2017

Hello and Good Day to you! Thank you so much for visiting or opening this post via email. I am thrilled to share my notes from the most recent Visual Journal Collective meeting at the Minnesota Center for Book Arts. Our April meeting topic was about favorite tools or supplies to use with/in your journal. Everyone shared the most amazing tips, and the journals are oh so inspiring! I have a bunch of photos from our evening, so you may want to pour a cup of tea and settle in for some fun!

Before the Meeting

I often like to hang out at Open Book prior to the Visual Journal Collective meeting. I absolutely love and feel grateful to have such a wonderful place in the Twin Cities that supports artists and writers. This pre-meeting time gives me a chance to unwind. I took my journal to the outdoor balcony and made this:

It's a bit of collage, finger painting, and stamping. These are some of my favorite things to experiment with in my art journal. What do you love to do in your journal? Leave a comment below or hit reply for email subscribers. I would love to hear your ideas!

April 2017 Visual Journal Collective Meeting

We started out by introducing ourselves. Some people have been coming for a long time (when Roz Stendahl facilitated, then Suzanne Hughes), and some people are fairly new. We want everyone to feel seen and welcome at our monthly meetings. By the way, our meetings are free and open to any adults interested in visual journaling, keeping a sketchbook, or art journaling. For more information, there is a button on the right-hand side bar at OrangeSpiralArts.com

Here are a few pics of all the tables and the wonderful people at them:

After introductions, I handed out a little gift to all of the participants. Then I shared about one of my favorite tools-the plastic card!

I may have been a little enthusiastic as I shared about my favorite tool, but I knew I was in good company. : )

Here are more favorite tools and supplies shared by Visual Journal Collective April meeting attendees:

Marsha talked about her favorite stylus for scoring paper, especially if you have to score against the grain. See her fabulous book below.

Molly talked about several really fun and interesting things. First up is the General's Water Soluble Graphite Pencil.

Next, many of us could relate to Molly's excitement over reused "trash" or recyclables turned into an art tool. Two of Molly's recent repurposed favorites are a plastic spoon and a rubber ball (pictured).

Another "trash to treasure" collector is Kari. We were all so enamored by Kari's thick journal filled with writing, torn pages, and glued in objects.

Kari's favorite tool is a heavy duty glue that does NOT stink, called Weldbond.

She did note that Weldbond does not work great with a rusty nail over a piece of plastic, just fyi.

Jean has a tin of tiny pieces that she has recently discovered are great for using with a fine-tipped Pentel Aquash Water Brush (sold at Wet Paint) as a way to add to her sketches of Japanese toys. A note about the Pentel Aquash Water Brush is that it is does not roll away, due to its unique shape.

Jean also shared her drawing explorations with the Non-photo blue pencil, recommended by writer, artist and "accidental professor", Lynda Barry.

In case you want to learn more about Lynda Barry and her being an "accidental professor", I highly recommend her book, Syllabus: Notes from An Accidental Professor. In this book, she talks how and why to use the Non-Photo blue pencil.

Chris talked about shopping at Ax-Man and discovering some great tools. Please note that the inventory is constantly changing at Ax-Man, and the tools Chris found are no longer there. You can still keep your eyes peeled for similar items, or these items at other locations.

One item Chris likes is this marker by Milwaukee tools. It's called an Inkzall permanent marker, often used on job sites.

Chris also talked about a silicone mat that is convenient for keeping pages clean, for spray ink messes, and painting messes, as it wipes off easily.

Kim talked about her favorite Tombow Mono Permanent Adhesive Tape Runner to use for collage.

There's the tape runner itself:

And then the refills:

Before Kim knew that visual journaling or art journaling was a thing, she was making collages in an old book.

Theresa shared her new favorite carrying case. She loves the clear window so that she can easily see what's inside the pouch.

Theresa also shared how she loves to repurpose small tins to carry her supplies.

Lynn shared her favorite paper punches that you can use anywhere on the page. They are by Martha Stewart and are called All Over the Page paper punches.

I didn't get a good picture of Lynn's paper punched pages, but here is one of Lynn's inspiring journal pages! You can see the paper punches at the bottom left of the image.

Journal Sharing Time

After people shared their favorite tools and supplies, we had some time to share our journals. This is one of my favorite parts of being part of the Visual Journal Collective. Everyone has such a unique way of creating, and it is really, really inspiring to see other people's journals. I shared some images already, but will continue to share the remaining photos I took of people's journals. I hope you love this sneak peek!

My apologies in advance for the photo blur. Pages were flipping fast, and I am a little rusty with the camera I was using.

08/17/2016

Color is one of the things I am most grateful for in this life. Ever since I was a child, playing with large boxes of crayons, colored pencils, and markers is what thrills me most. With that being said, I am so happy, excited, and pretty much ecstatic to be one of the 24 teachers in the fall 2016 edition of 21 Secrets Color, Color, Color!

This fall, on Monday, September 26th, you'll have the chance to meet 24 amazing teachers who are sharing their best color secrets with you. If you register today, or at least by Friday, August 19th, you can SAVE $10 (enter coupon code: COLOR).

What you'll receive is a downloadable PDF of 150+ pages, over 25 hours of videos, and the opportunity to connect in the 21 Secrets Facebook Community.

I do hope you'll join us. This is going to be ridiculously fun! We all need a little more playtime in our lives.

07/06/2016

There's a new book which has been birthed from living and surviving life. It is Erin Faith Allen's The Underneath-A Pictorial Memoir. http://www.erinfaithallen.com
I don't know how I have it in my hands already, except that perhaps it was divine intervention. I needed this book right now. Maybe you do, too.
WARNING: If you had a tumultuous childhood, the first half of the book may be triggering. I recommend getting the book and surrounding yourself with love. Have a good trauma therapist at the ready.

Today is Frida Kahlo's birthday.
Today, I took some self-portraits, which I have not done for awhile.
Today is the beginning of the Brave Girl Symposium in Boise, Idaho. This happens to be where Erin Faith Allen lived as a child. And she will be speaking at the symposium.

This is what I needed to share with you today. I hope this post finds you at the right moment.

Next, wet the included paintbrush from the Faber-Castell Graphite Aquarelle pencil set, and start to play within the stencil where you scribbled your lines.

Tip: Blot with a paper towel before removing the stencil.

Remove the stencil to see the design.

To continue with the art journal pages, I used a stencil from the Halftone Dots series and some turquoise paint.

TIP: To get more on your background, clean the stencil with a baby wipe on the blank side of your page spread.

Now it’s time to add some journaling. I am a big believer in the power of writing, and I also love how handwriting looks in an art journal. What’s fun about the Faber-Castell Graphite Aquarelle pencils, is that you can easily blend out some of your words so it’s illegible to other people.

To make the writing even more difficult to read, I made a line grid over the words and added more water with the paintbrush.

Use markers to add patterns or anything else you want to include on your pages.

For me, this page spread is complete. I love creating backgrounds while playing and experimenting with art supplies!

I have been taking the online workshop Creative + Practice since 2011. I participate at least once per year, as Lisa generously gives registrants forever access to each new round she offers. A new round just started on June 8, 2016. I am feeling super jazzed and excited about this next session. It feels like exactly what I need right now to brainstorm what's happening next for me and my small business, Orange Spiral Arts.

I am going to see if this works. I created an album in the Creative + Practice Facebook Group. I am going to try to link it here. Hopefully if you click on the word "here", you'll see the four pictures I posted.

Mostly what I want to share is that I love this online class. It has helped me tremendously over the last 5 years. I am thankful for people who are out there sharing their wisdom, especially around the subjects related to creativity.

Lynda Barryis also doing amazing things. The first thing in my Creative + Practice sketchbook is an article about Lynda Barry's work at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, my alma mater. In the article, Lynda talks about the correlation between the hand and the brain. If we move our hands, eventually the mind will catch up and give us pearls of wisdom. I experienced this last night as I was cleaning off my office desk that has been collecting piles of papers for nearly four years. I blame the mess on being a first time parent while trying to build a small business as an expressive arts coach.

What happened to me while I was moving my hands, picking up papers, sorting through piles, felt quite remarkable. Not only did I visually enjoy seeing the bottom of my desk for the first time in four years, I also felt like wisdom and light was being revealed. It's kind of abstract and hard to explain, but all I want to say, is that I agree with Lynda. We must use our hands. They are our creative tools. There is a mind-body connection there. Studies are showing that people feel better when they engage in activities like drawing, painting, playing an instrument, writing, doodling, etc.

This conversation reminds me of the amazing artist Lynn Whipple who has a great poster with the words, "Move Your Hands" on it.

So, this blog post is a bit of a departure from my usual post. Let me know if you like the change, what changes you'd like to see, or any other positive words of encouragement you have for me! I appreciate you! Thank you!

04/29/2016

Each day, I figure out a little more about what I love about expressive art.

Today, I stumbled upon a video of Steven Aimone talking about his expressive drawing workshops. I believe he teaches in Maine and North Carolina. The video I want to share with you is "unlisted" on YouTube, which means only certain people with the link are supposed to view it and share it. You can find the video on Aimone Art Services here.

All I can say is that when you see something that makes you hold your breath, eyes wide, and also makes your heart smile, you're onto something! That thing is likely part of your soul purpose or something big like that. Just sayin'.

Have a great weekend!

PS Don't forget to sign up for Spectrum 2016, which begins on Monday, May 2nd! I am so, so excited for this series of online holistic art journaling workshops!

01/25/2016

Hello, hello! Happy day to you! Thanks for visiting Orange Spiral Arts for another edition of Mark Making Monday.

I am doing something a little different today. I am adding another form of creative expression that I love just as much as I love mixed media art. You may or may not know it, but I adore photography.

When my family went out for a winter walk this weekend, we came upon some large construction equipment. As soon as I saw it, I knew that I had to take some close up pictures for Mark Making Monday!

First I will share some photos from the art studio, then I will share the photos from the construction site.

Let's play with paper and paint!

After you select a variety of papers and you stop drooling over their potential (er-maybe that's just me??), get out your paints. I chose a variety of inexpensive acrylics.

Paint some simple shapes in solid colors on a few book pages.

On a larger piece of paper with text on it, use up that extra paint by creating a variety of abstract shapes on one page.

While your paint is still wet, make marks in the paint with the end of your paint brush. (See the orange section above or below).

Use the end of your paint brush to remove paint around words that you might want to appear more clearly.

Now, get out a pen or pencil. I chose a Staedtler Mars Lumograph 2B pencil.

Keep your mark making simple and enjoyable.

Move on to another book page with paint.

Add pen or pencil marks.

It's subtle, but even simple marks can add a lot. See the photo below comparing the three book pages with paint. The book page with yellow does not have any additional marks.

These papers can be doodled on, sketched on, or torn up as collage fodder.

Next Up: Painting on an old magazine page

I simply adore painting on magazine pages. There is just something so delicious about the texture of the paper.

If you still have extra paint to use up, like I did, by all means, grab something and keep painting! I grabbed a magazine page.

Try not to be too precious with the page. Let your brush swoop and swirl all around.

Add a few colors and vary the way you use your brush. For example, the cream paint was applied in a varied dash pattern over the magazine page. You are making marks as you paint. Enjoy the process and have some fun!

Magazine Page Number 2

Still wanting to use up extra paint, I played with a circle pattern on another magazine page. I filled in a few circles here and there. I also painted some stripes. I really like the contrast of the colorful paint over a black and white image. What do you think? Have you tried painting on magazine pages? Do you have any favorite methods or techniques? I'd love to hear all about them in the comments below.

Again, these painted magazine pages can be added to with doodles, writing, sketching, or torn up for collage. Have fun! It's all about the process of creating that matters. Enjoy the moment. Unwind from your day, and play with art supplies!

Photography: Inspiration from the Construction Site

Oh, and I had to show you a photo of my little helper who thought the construction equipment was really interesting, too! In this last photo, check out the marks and lines from the dripping water. Feel inspired to go drip some paint? I do!

Thank you for being here.

I hope that you might try at least one mark making technique from this post.

In Summary, Mark Making Ideas to try:

Paint on old book pages. Use a pen or pencil to make some subtle marks.

Paint on a magazine page. Use the end of your paint brush in the wet paint to make marks on the page.

Play around with different ways to make marks while painting, such as dashes and dots.

Keep your eyes open for mark making inspiration, such as at a nearby construction site!

Have a beautiful day!

PS The first lesson for the Beautiful BEing Program ONLINE went out on Friday, January 22nd. There's a private Flickr Group for students to share their writing and painting experiences. We'd love to have you, if you feel called to join us! The Pay What You Can option is still available!

12/28/2015

I am departing from the consistent themes I've been posting for the last few months. Typically, today would be a "Mark Making Monday" post.

I am thinking of changing things up for the New Year, but am not quite sure yet. Today is a test. : )

A LITTLE REFLECTION ON LAYERING AND COMPOSITION

So, today I would like to share an art journal page spread I created, inspired by the work of Orly Avineri.

I looked through Orly's latest product called The (art) Journaling Game. It's a set of 48 cards with prompts on one side, and Orly's art journal page details on the other side. I feel like I learned so much about composition and design by reading through this deck of cards.

Understanding layering, design, and composition has been such a process for me. It does NOT come naturally to me. It really is a creative practice. The more you try, the more you learn, and the better you get at it. I am grateful for all of the creative practice I have been doing over the years. I am also incredibly grateful for all of the teachers (locally and on the internet) who have been sharing their passion for mixed media art, collage, painting, photography, the book arts, and art journaling!

As 2016 gets closer, I am feeling thrilled by all of the possibilities for entering into creative space and creative practice. For me, my art, writing, and photography time give my life a deeper meaning. Some of that time is spent alone, while some of that creative time is spent in the company of others, like family, friends, and students. All of it is a gift for which I am ever grateful.

ART JOURNAL LAYERS LABELED

In the photo above, I used the same text color if an element was repeated in more than one place on the page spread. Below is a close-up without words.

Pictured below are two new collage layers that are semi-transparent. I love adding semi-transparent collage layers. It's fun to see the art underneath, yet that new layer also changes the look of the page.

I like to add imagery and text upside down on purpose sometimes. For example, the kitty wrapping paper and the photo label, "IMG_2701" are upside down on the pages.

I absolutely adore dripping paint. I think I first dripped paint in Flora Bowley's Bloom True E-Course. (A highly recommend e-course, if you want to paint on large canvas).

I love working big and working small. Art journals come in a variety of sizes, which makes them a perfect place to try out new art supplies, art ideas, sketches, layering techniques, etc.

Thanks for taking a look at this journal spread inspired by Orly Avineri's work!

WHAT'S COMING UP IN JANUARY 2016 FROM ORANGE SPIRAL ARTS

If you'd like to have more creative time, space, and practice in 2016, I have several offerings and announcements to share for local and international folks!

12/11/2015

For today's Freedom through Painting Friday post, I am sharing step-by-step photos of an intuitive painting I created on large watercolor paper. My hope is that by sharing this process with you, you will be more inclined to allow yourself the freedom to paint in an expressive, intuitive manner. It truly changes the painting experience!

I chose to start with lighter, warm colors, so that they would show through some of my later layers. However, you may choose to start with dark colors, cool colors, or a mix of both. Let your gut lead you. Explore and enjoy the process.

Also, I have NEWS for Twin Cities folks interested in further exploring their creative side in order to better hear the whisperings of their soul and inner wisdom!

Beginning in January 2016, on the third Saturday of every month, January through May 2016, I will be offering a writing + painting workshop at courgeous heARTS in south Minneapolis. I will be making the official announcement sometime next week. You'll know if this experience is calling to you, and if it is, please go ahead and mark your calendar for the third Saturday of every month, January-May 2016, 10am-2pm. Stay tuned for more information and registration options!

A FREE Monthly Meeting for Visual and Art Journal Keepers in the Twin Cities. Click button above for more information.

Astrology and Art-2017-A Year Long Program with Hali Karla

You and Your Creativity Matter

Vision Board the E-Course:: A Powerful Way to Gain Clarity and Manifest the Life You Want to Live -OPEN for REGISTRATION-FOREVER ONLINE ACCESS at one affordable price!!

At your core, you are a Beautiful BEing, full of love and light. This online e-course offers writing and expressive painting prompts to assist you in reconnecting to your true essence. Registration is ALWAYS OPEN. To find out more, click the image above. There is a Pay-What-You-Can option available.